What is Quatuor Coronati?

Quatuor Coronati Lodge No. 2076 is a Masonic research lodge meeting in London under the Grand Lodge of England, established in 1886 to study the history, symbols, and legends of Freemasonry 1. Functioning as a Masonic literary and archaeological society meeting as a tiled lodge, it derives its name from the Four Crowned Martyrs, who were historically venerated by operative masons 1.

The petition to form the lodge was signed by nine scholars—including Robert Freke Gould, William James Hughan, and George William Speth—with Sir Charles Warren designated as the first Worshipful Master 1. Its warrant was granted in 1884 by Albert Edward, Prince of Wales, then Grand Master, and the lodge was consecrated on January 12, 1886 1.

Membership in the lodge proper is limited to forty full members, but in 1887 it established an international Correspondence Circle open to any Master Mason in good standing 12. The lodge publishes its annual transactions under the title Ars Quatuor Coronatorum, which contains scholarly treatises, critical discussions, book reviews, and lodge minutes 1. The publication aims to treat Masonic archaeology and history with the critical methods of modern scholarship rather than relying uncritically on older speculative traditions 12.

While long regarded as a prominent authority in Masonic scholarship 1, the lodge's empirical focus led to friction with esoteric writers. Arthur Edward Waite expressed disdain for the lodge's members and scholarship, while members of Quatuor Coronati routinely published sharp critiques of Waite's works in Ars Quatuor Coronatorum, attacking his historical inaccuracies and speculative theories 3.